(A) Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a connector, more specifically, to a connector equipped with a terminal protection device, which may be used for cellular phone battery chargers.
(B) Description of the Related Art
At present, a connector that connects a cellular phone battery charger and a cellular phone is usually composed of an insulated housing and terminals. The insulated housing has a head portion and a rear portion which are opposite to each other. In addition, the insulated housing comprises a plurality of terminal cavities penetrating from the head portion to the rear portion. The terminals are inserted into their respective terminal cavities, but their two ends extend behind the terminal cavities. The middle of each terminal is designed to be flexible. One end of each terminal is connected to a cable while the other end is designed to engage a mating terminal.
FIG. 9 illustrates a connector 9 made by an existing method of the terminal being inserted into the terminal cavities. Glue 91 is manually applied to the periphery of the terminal cavities 92 near the rear portion of the insulation case 90 not only to fix the terminals 93 but also to close the glued side of the terminal cavities 92 to prevent the flow of plastic into the cavities during the over mold process. However, the existing method has the following drawbacks. The production is inefficient, as connectors are glued one by one. The insertion quality is poor because the glue alone may not adequately fix the terminals 93, allowing them to be pushed outward. Because the glued side of the terminal cavities 92 is not blocked, some of the plastic during the over mold process may enter the terminal cavities 92. Furthermore, during the insertion process, glue 91 is likely to permeate into the terminal cavities 92, and thus the elastic portions of the terminals 93 are eventually glued to the walls of the terminal cavities 92.